Branford upgrades dispatch software to improve emergency response

Published 4:55 pm, Monday, February 15, 2016

BRANFORD >> The town’s emergency response dispatch center has upgraded to a new software that police Capt. Geoffrey Morgan says will create a safer environment and utilize resources more efficiently when a person calls 911.

“It’s about putting the right people to that scene without jeopardizing public safety,” Morgan said, “I think everyone can expect a better public service.”

That can now be done with new software the town will be implementing, Priority Dispatch System. When a dispatcher answers a call, they will ask the caller for their name, location, and reason for calling. Depending on what the responses are, the software generates a new set of questions that continue to update as new information is put into the system. Morgan said although some people may think answering questions during an emergency situation can be frustrating, the more information that is given, the better quality of care the person can receive.

“They also might think that just because the dispatcher is still asking them questions that they haven’t sent someone out to help them, but that is not the case, most of the time the dispatcher can get those responders out within the first set of questions,” Morgan said.

The answers are updated instantly so that the person in the ambulance, police car, or fire truck can receive the information as they head to the scene.

This new program “enables dispatchers to accurately assess each emergency or routine situation and send the best response possible while safeguarding valuable and limited emergency services resources and increasing safety for both citizens and responders,” police said in a press release Monday. “One key benefit Branford Communication Center will now provide is a constant stream of crucial and updated scene information to field responders en route. This information will better prepare responders to give precise assistance when they arrive at the scene.”

In 2015, the Branford Communication Center answered over 85,000 telephone calls and dispatched over 28,000 police, fire and medical calls for service. In 1995, the town became one of the first in the state to have a dispatch center that was shared by all three emergency response groups: medical, fire, and police. Branford’s response time is already lower than the national average, Morgan said, but speed is not the only component that should be looked at when assessing emergency responders.

“Every time you send one of those vehicles out there, sirens going, it’s a danger to the people driving and anyone out on the streets,” Morgan said. “So if we can make sure that we’re only sending the right resources, and prioritize the call, it just makes for a safer community but still provide the service they need too.”

The physical look of the dispatch center will not change. The same computers are being used in the room and in the emergency vehicles.

“The only change is that they now have this new system and protocol,” Morgan said. “It integrated quite nicely with the computers we already have.”

The new software will also not require new emloyees, or replace existing ones.

“There’s no change to our staff,” Morgan said. “We may revisit that down the road, but as of right now it stays the same.”

With the addition of a quality assurance component that comes with the new system, reports will be generated that assess how the system is working. Previously, there was no method to take a look at the quality control. Morgan said it measures compliance, accuracy, how the call went, if a call was missed, issues with procedure, and even the dispatchers themselves.

“It gives us a feedback method to actually assess it and improve,” he said.

According to Morgan, funding for the new system came on the heels of a communications upgrade that originated in 2012.

“This was one of the final purchases,” Morgan said.

Fire Chief Thomas Mahoney, who spearheaded the implementation with Police Chief Kevin Halloran, said the communication personnel will have reliable and consistent tools to assist them

“The questions asked by the Telecommunicator will give us a greater degree of confidence that what the caller is reporting is what we will find upon arrival, ensuring an appropriate response to any emergency,” Mahoney said in a release Monday.

Halloran said it will help reduce the “constant threat of liability.”

The Priority Dispatch System includes a three-day certification training course for emergency dispatchers. Those who work on the new system must be certified by the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch and must recertified every two years by completing 48 hours of continuing dispatch education.